Wanderlei Silva Faces the Music

The Nevada State Athletic Commission met yesterday to discuss a litany of issues, and one item on the agenda concerned PRIDE FC and UFC veteran Wanderlei Silva – specifically, his fleeing of a surprise drug test on May 24. As we all know, Silva greeted the commission rep sent to collect a urine sample at his gym, then promptly disappeared out of the back door. What did “The Axe Murderer” have to say for himself?

Seaking through his lawyer, Wanderlei Silva stated at Tuesday’s Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) meeting that the reason he refused to undergo a random NAC sanctioned drug test on May 24 is because he was concerned that the test would show the presence of diuretics in his system, which he claims he began taking along with anti-inflammatories prescribed by a UFC doctor in order to help him recover from a fractured right wrist he suffered in February while coaching The Ultimate Fighter Brazil.

Diuretics are generally used to flush the body of its water. However, they’re also used as… *cue dramatic music* …a masking agent to hide the presence of other things in a person’s system.

“He was taking diuretics for the sole purpose of minimizing the inflammation, to decrease the water retention. He now realized that he should have submitted to the drug test. He was surprised. It was the first time in his career where something like this (happened), out of competition, somebody showed up at his gym. That doesn’t negate or minimize what Mr. Silva did. He’s here to apologize to the commission, and he was concerned that the diuretics would show up on his sample.”

The Nevada commission also got to hear accounts of what transpired on May 24. The details paint an amusing picture.

Silva’s admission followed a detailed timeline of events laid out by NAC Executive Director Bob Bennett, as well as the independent representative who attempted to collect Silva’s blood and urine sample on May 24 in advance of Silva’s scheduled bout against Chael Sonnen at UFC 175.

The collector stated that he arrived at Silva’s gym during the mid-afternoon and personally introduced himself to the fighter, explaining that he was there on request of the NAC and required a blood and urine sample, to which Silva replied in acknowledgement. Silva subsequently requested to speak to his manager/trainer, who was present at the gym, then briefly walked into an office in the middle of the gym before exiting quickly.

“[Silva] walked back to the front counter,” the collector recalled. “And then walked past the office towards the back of the gym, and then went around the corner to the right. I casually followed behind him. When I turned around the corner, I realized there was an exit there and a bathroom. I didn’t see him anywhere.”

Silva’s wife subsequently called the gym’s phone and informed the collector that “they were not expecting the blood and urine test, and needed to do it later.” After being informed that the test needed to be completed immediately, Silva’s wife contacted Bennett and told the executive director that Silva would now “cooperate” with the collector, although she did not know where Silva presently was.

Silva did not respond to subsequent texts and calls from either the collector or Bennett, which led to Bennett contacting UFC Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Marc Ratner and explaining the situation.

It is pretty much a given that Silva will face some sort of punishment. As to what exactly, that will be determined at a hearing at a later date.